Time once again for the classic, All-American, "thrill of victory, agony of defeat" sporting event to end all sporting events. No, I am not talking about that annual over-hyped spectacle that I like to refer to as the "Stupor Bowl". This is due to the fact that after a first half of gluttony I will be in a stupor around the time Bruno Mars is greasing up his pompadour! The sporting event that I speak of today is the West Virginia Cast Iron Cook-Off (CICO) which was held at the fabulous Greenbrier Resort this past Jan 18.

 

For those of you who have been following along at home you will remember that the Market hosted a Country Roads Cook-Off (CRCO) back in July. You may also remember that the winner of the CRCO, Chris Stearns of Doddridge County, won an all-expenses paid trip to the CICO in order to compete with the Bridgeport Conference Center team. As a fellow member of the team your friendly blogger had the honor of partnering with Chris on our entree course (more on that later). Chris learned to cook from his grandmother and she taught him the fine art of Appalachian cooking as only a grandmother can. I learned more from Chris about our native cuisine and how to cook it in cast iron than I ever thought possible. And I had a blast doing it!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

For the record here is a list of the differences and similarities between the CRCO and the CICO:

 

 

Now you understand why the Bridgeport Farmers Market loves hosting a CRCO every summer! This year's Bridgeport CRCO will be held Sunday, July 27, at the Market. Start planning your special Appalachian inspired dish now and come out and compete in July.

 

In addition to Chris and me, this year's BCC CICO team also featured "Slick" Rick Johnson, Pete Battles, Craig Behr, Jerry Pomeroy, and Dave High. We were led once again by BCC Executive Chef Joe Vessecchia who was assisted by his Sous Chef Greg Chandler. We were also helped out by our ProStart student, Alex, who attends James Rumsey Technical Institute in Martinsburg. Alex now knows more about stuffing and cutting fried apple/peach pies than any human on the planet!

 

Back to the dish that Chris and I were responsible for preparing. Chef Joe's assignment for us was Cornbread Stuffed Quail with a Raspberry Glaze. This was served over a deliciously spicy side of Jalapeno Beans and Greens. This course was neither for the faint of heart nor those on a low fat diet. Both dishes were full of the holy trinity of pig products: pork belly, bacon, and ham. Of course, the way I saw it all the good stuff in the collard greens balanced things out quite nicely! And quail is such a succulent little bird, how could it possibly be bad for you? For those interested here is a link to our quail recipe: https://db.tt/okwQ443k

 

 

Our team's first course, a Roasted Beet and Goat Cheese Napoleon, was prepared by Rick and Pete. This was followed up with a Brown Sugar Seared Pork Belly dish which was served over a cider reduction and topped with a bell pepper relish and parsnip chips. This course was put together by Craig and Jerry. Our quail dish was next up and it was followed by our dessert course prepared by Dave and Alex. They made classic fried pies stuffed with apples and the world-famous Greenbrier Peaches. These were topped with a whipped cream made with locally distilled Apple Pie Moonshine from Pinchgut Hollow Distillery in Fairmont. Rather decadent, don't you think?

 

All of our dishes were cooked in cast iron skillets which is probably the reason we won the award for "Best Use of Cast Iron". Of course, as nice as this was it was not the title we were shooting for. Alas, the title of Grand Champion was not to be bestowed upon the BCC team in 2014 but we will back at it again next year at the 10th anniversary CICO to be held at the Charleston Marriott on January 31, 2015.

 

The 2014 CICO Grand Champion was the team representing Noah's Eclectic Bistro in Charleston. Chef Noah Miller is one of the rising stars on the WV restaurant scene and this was his coming out party. His feature dish was billed as an Appalachian Paella. Featuring wild boar sausage and venison tenderloin over mushroom dusted rice this extremely creative twist on the classic Spanish large skillet dish was exquisite. My recommendation to you this month is this: If you happen to find yourself in our capital city run, don't walk, down to 110 McFarland St. and hope that one of Noah's eleven tables is available. Check it out at http://noahseclectic.com/

 

Don't forget to come out today and shop the Bridgeport Farmers Market's Winter Market. We'll be in the warm confines of the Bridgeport Conference Center from 11am to 2pm. And while you're there treat yourself to a Market-style brunch prepared by BCC's culinary staff from some of the same products used at both cook-offs.

 

Until next month, Stay Fresh!

 

The Bridgeport Farmers Market Association is the five member all volunteer board of directors that governs the Bridgeport Farmers Market. It is supported by a wonderful group of community volunteers who help in the setup and maintenance of the market. For more information on the Farmers Market or to see how you can help please e-mail us at bridgeportfarmersmarket@yahoo.comor, better yet, LIKE us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter. You can also check out the Market’s own YouTube channel: http://www.youtube.com/user/BridgeportFarmersMkt